I did a search and couldn't find it...though maybe I missed it. Are we allowed to use QNC with EV-DO phones like the E815 and VX8100?
Depends on whom you ask. No doubt some will quote Verizon's Terms of Service to say that no tethering of any kind is allowed. Others will tell you that the now 1x QNC or 1xRTT costs only minutes, or peak minutes. Others will tell you that $15/mo VCast also entitles you to unlimited tethered data.
... Seems to me that my (verbal) contract with Verizon didn't mention any terms of service.
"On the other hand at this time, we do not support the use of the LG
VX8100 or the Motorola E815 or any of our VCAST handsets enabled as
cellular modems. The VCAST handsets are optimized for consumer use of the
VCAST and Get It Now data services, but not for tethering to a laptop.
VCAST handsets should only be used for the approved Get It Now services
such as Picture Messaging, Video Messaging, Video Clips, Mobile Web,
mobile Games, and other services on our Get It Now website."
I think it just a matter of staying under the radar. If you have massive amounts of data usage, someone will likely notice and audit your account. I've sort of deduced this because...
a) I've used it paired with my Dell Axim x50v to access a terminal server at my office on many occasions. I've also since gotten a bill from Verizon that showed no added charges. This tells me that I didn't set off any alarms.
b) I could sit here and download every VCAST item 400 times each which would move a massive amount of data. To my mind there wouldn't be anything Verizon could or even would do because they sold me unlimited VCAST, and were happy to do it. They had to have considered that some shut-ins might do this. This tells me that they're not really as high styrung on this as many people might think.
c) They could have very easily restricted network access to to their own network, but they didn't. Gotta wonder why. An evil plot to trick you into a false sense of security the SLAM you with a giant bill? Maybe. But I think it's more like this...
The official position is that it's a no-go and that's that. This I think is because although they won't admit it, there is some possibility that large scale use could put the network in a bind. Being that they have to balance testing time with speedy market delivery, thye may not have done all the testing they should have. Or maybe some markets are weaker in capacity than they want to let us know.
Now... while "no tethering" may be the official position, I suspect that if you don't f*** up their universe, they're more than likely not going to f*** up yours. Case in point... has anyone read the fine print on their broadband connection agreement? Depending on your cable provider, it likely reads something to the effect that you are not to use more than 500MB of bandwidth daily, and doing so can result in termination. I however routinely use more than that and nobody has said a word about it. My thinking on this is basically the same thing I put forth above... I don't f*** up their universe, they don't f*** up mine. Meaning that so long as I don't cause problems for them or their customers, they're not likely to cause problems for me.
The conclusion is... you can probably get away with it for a good long time, maybe even indefinitely. But they've went and protected their position, so if you start going nuts with it you're likely to pay the price.
"On the other hand at this time, we do not support the use of the LG
VX8100 or the Motorola E815 or any of our VCAST handsets enabled as
cellular modems. The VCAST handsets are optimized for consumer use of the
VCAST and Get It Now data services, but not for tethering to a laptop.
VCAST handsets should only be used for the approved Get It Now services
such as Picture Messaging, Video Messaging, Video Clips, Mobile Web,
mobile Games, and other services on our Get It Now website."
Ah well.
Don't give up so easily. Define "supported" and "should not." At least for one Verizon data support customer service rep this means that she can't spend hours on the phone walking you through the process, but you're free to do whatever you want with your phone. If you've discovered a back door to enable additional capabilities on the phone as designed by the manufacturer, good for you! If Verizon wants to discuss with me their Terms of Use document posted on some website somewhere, fine. But I'll also want to discuss the terms of my (verbal) contract with Verizon. While they're free to break their contract with me whenever they want, I'm also free to present them with my modest list of damages. Good luck!
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I called them today after reading this thread because i have a E815 on order. I specifically told them "I was going to hook it up to a laptop, use email, but mostly for playing battlefield 2 when I am on the road. Can I do this, or will I be charged extra? What do I need to do to do this? I gave up my DSL when I moved to my new home and want DSL like service on a laptop computer mostly for High end computer gaming, plus internet for my company work."
She first told me that it would cost me "I think 79.99, but ill check on that and on the playing those games". I clarified with her what phone I was getting (E815) a new phone soon.
She left for almost 5 minutes to ask a mgr i think. When she returned she told me "Oh the price had dropped to 59.99 for the unlimited access. But when you get your new phone, call us back and the price for broadband EVDO will be less than that for your area since it should be there really soon and that EVDO phones are less for that access. You would have no problem with any additional charges for that type of usage." I was thinking to myself WOW!!!
She asked me (of course) if I wanted it right then. I told her I needed to wait for my new phone to come in first.
I have asked various verizon mgrs in past few months about 1X service and they always told me that you could simply use your minutes, but at 40-60k, they didnt recommend doing any major usage, like gaming.
Cellular phones and service has been my life for past 12 years... I have heard almost all the customer questions including "How does a HOME phone work?"
Bear in mind that there are a few "Verizon Special Forces Black Ops Task Force Terminator Team Members" on these forums who delight in trying to scare others into thinking they have some clout or inside info on what Verizon will or won't do to those who "Dare" to tether.
Total BS in MY OPINION, and I'm willing to take my chances without any substantive details of who they are with these pearls of wisdom. Why is it so important to threaten us unofficially, instead of going through their inside track and send us a notice of breach of contract from the company?
I think someone called them Kiosk Kiddies. Kinda has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?
PS. I believe they might be getting a spiff if they sell additional data services to customers, so God Forbid the word should get out you can get data with just the $15 Vcast add on.
Not nessicerly, if you live in an EVDO coverage area and have an EVDO phone, you automatically use EVDO for mobile web, gin , sending pix/flix, and of course you can theather your phone to your laptop as I have tried which is amazingly fast. BTW I only have the $5 mobile web a month.
Originally Posted by aviationwiz
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